Ankle support



Oct. 5, 1948. G. H. WILKINSON ANKLE SUPPORT Filed Nov. 27, 1946 Im'cutor v George Henry Wilkinson B) QM and ' leather or the like.

Patented Oct. 5, 1948 ANKLE SUPPORT George Henry Wilkinson, Windsor, Ontario, Canada; The Canada Trust Company executor of said George Henry Wilkinson, deceased Application November 27, 1M6, Serial No. 712,642

' This invention relates to improvements in ankle supports of the type in general use and most popularly used by athletes while engaged in sport.

The general and prime object of this invention is to supply certain refinements and improvements in the parent invention Patent Number 2,165,879 of July 11, 1939.

A specific object of this invention is to provide a single securing means which serves the dual function of fastening the support to the foot and forming a foundation or arch lifter.

Another object of this invention is to provide a device which facilitates application and removal thereof and is of inexpensive construction.

Other objects and features of novelty of this invention will become apparent in the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a prospective view of the-improved ankle support as viewed while in operative position;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the form of the instant invention showing the device in the open position, and

Figure 3 is a sectional view of the device taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2, showing the material components thereof.

Referring now in detail to the appended drawing, which illustrates a preferred embodiment of the instant invention, the reference numeral I is used to designate in a general way the present invention.

A semi-molded, somewhat fiat member 12 preferably composed of a resilient material such as natural or synthetic rubber or the like, as indicated at I4, is faced with a material l6, which has more body therein such as certain canvases, light similar to a projected portion of a frustrum of a cone. The bottom portion l8 thereof has an end of up-turning arcuate configuration while the to portion has a similar configuration somewhat smaller, however, due to the cone-like sides 22 and 24. In the top portion or edge is an arcuate cut-out 26 adapted to provide for freedom of movement of the leg tendons adjacent the heel.

1 Claim. (Cl. 12880) appropriate place to receive the dual purpose strap 32 and retain the same therein. The said strap I 32 is fixedly secured to the body member l2 by The member I2 is not dis- As noted, a slight out-curving portion 28, of the body member [2, is supplied in more-or-less semipressed form to accommodate the protruding cuboid bone which is present in substantially all ankles.

As seen clearly in the drawing, a pair of slits 30 are provided through the member It in the suitable means such as glueing, sewing and the like or may be formed as a continuation of the body member. The method of securing the device to the foot is quite clear from the drawing. It is simply curved around the heel of the foot leaving the front end open thereby leaving the instep exposed. As is also obvious from the drawing, the strap 32 falls under the arch supporting the same;

It is here noted that the instant invention also contemplates the use of a specially shaped center portion of the strap 32 for more support of the arch or more proper support of the arch. It is seen here that the strap 32 is held in position by the weight thereon and accordingly, a slightly tight fit of the strap within the slits 30 will retain the strap securely therein.

In passing, it might be noted that no portion of the device is placed under the foot other than the strap and it is also noted that the shoe insole abutting portion 34 of the invention has a slight in-curved' edge to more satisfactorily fit around the bottom dge of the foot.

While there is herein disclosed a preferred embodiment of the instant inventive concept, it is obvious that slight modifications may be made therein without departin from the spirit and scope of the instant invention and therefore limitation is desired only as' to the scope of the following claim.

I claim:

In an ankle support adapted to be worn on a foot and associated ankle portion of the anatomy, a body member comprising a pair of sides and a back, the front of said body member being open and terminating in the rear of the toes, said member being composed of layers of resilient and pliable materialand a strap secured to one end of said body member, a pair of slits in theother end of said body for receiving said strap thereby clamping the device to a foot and. said strap supporting the arch of a foot.

GEORGE HENRY WILKINSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,165,879 Wilkinson July 11, 1939 

